England veteran batter Joe Root was seen in phenomenal touch with his bat in the first innings of the ongoing fourth Test of the Anderson-Tendulkar Trophy 2025. In the first innings, he recorded several milestones with his bat. The 34-year-old, with his exceptional 150-run knock, shattered the feats of Rahul Dravid, Jacques Kallis, and Ricky Ponting, who were holding the fourth, third and, second positions on the list of batters with most Test runs respectively. With his 38th Test century, he also equalled Sri Lanka legend Kumar Sangakkara’s record of 38 Test hundreds. Root is now the batter with the second most Test runs, following Sachin Tendulkar, who is holding the top spot.
After the fourth day’s play, when Joe Root was asked about chasing the Master Blaster’s scintillating feat, he said that it’s not something which is crucial for him as he emphasises on winning matches for his side. “Those sorts of things should look after themselves. The focus has to be about winning games… He made his Test debut before I was born,” Root told BBC.
Joe Root considers himself fortunate to play against Sachin Tendulkar
In his conversation with BBC, Root also said that he considers himself lucky for getting an opportunity to play against Tendulkar on the same ground in a Test match. “To be playing on the same ground as him and to get the chance to play against him was incredibly cool. (He was) someone you grew up watching, admiring, trying to learn from… To get to play in a series where he was still playing was really quite a memorable experience that I’ll never forget,” added Root.
In 2012, when England won their last Test series on Indian soil under Alastair Cook’s leadership, Root was handed his red-ball debut in the final match played in Nagpur. It is the only instance to recount for cricket supporters when Root and Tendulkar featured in an international game. The match concluded in a draw and Root played an impressive knock of 73 in the first innings.
